(PresidentialInsider.com)- The White House is aiming to have 70% of adult Americans receive at least one COVID-19 vaccine shot by July 4, but whether they’re successful in doing so will hinge on whether they can change some citizens’ minds.
According to a recent poll, though, that may be quite the uphill battle.
This week, a new poll conducted by The Economist/YouGov found that 80% of people who say they won’t get vaccinated against coronavirus said there’s nothing that could change their minds.
The poll asked people: “Is there anything that could change your mind and convince you to get vaccinated?”
Only 5% of those who responded said yes, with 79% saying that nothing at all could change their minds about getting a vaccine. The remaining 16% of respondents said they weren’t sure.
The polls results highlight the concern of many that the U.S. won’t be able to reach “herd immunity” because so many people are reluctant to get immunized. As The New York Times wrote in a recent article:
“Now, more than half of adults in the United States have been inoculated with at least one dose of a vaccine. But, daily vaccination rates are slipping, and there is widespread consensus among scientists and public health experts that the herd immunity threshold is not attainable — at least not in the foreseeable future, and perhaps not ever.
“Instead, they are coming to the conclusion that rather than making a long-promised exit, the virus will most likely become a manageable threat that will continue to circulate in the United States for years to come, still causing hospitalizations and deaths but in much smaller numbers.”
Another issue is that experts are increasing the “herd immunity” threshold. It was once 70% of the population needing to be vaccinated, but now it’s 80% because of the variants that are popping up. As The Times reported:
“Experts now calculate the herd immunity threshold to be at least 80%. If even more contagious variants develop, or if scientists find that immunized people can still transmit the virus, the calculation will have to be revised upward again.”
The medical community can take some solace from the recent The Economist/YouGov poll, though. Only 18% of the respondents to the survey said “I will not get vaccinated” when asked of their intentions.
This means that 82% of people who responded either plan to get vaccinated, have gotten vaccinated or haven’t decided.
In fact, 42% of the people who participated in the poll said: “I have received all the injections required to be fully vaccinated against COVID-19.” Another 14% said: “I have started the vaccination process, but need another shot.”
That leaves 14% remaining who responded: “I’m not sure about getting vaccinated.”
If the White House really wants to get as many American adults as possible vaccinated to reach their herd immunity goal, then they need to do everything possible to convince this 14% that it’s worth it.
We’ll see if they can be successful in doing so.
